Charlie returned to school much earlier than his sister, only two days after Christmas. The first day after the holiday break, Neil, Laura and Scott were all invited to Charlie's elementary school for Career Day.
"Can I ask Dad to go first?" Charlie asked Neil.
"Well, if that's how you feel, Charlie." Neil nodded.
"That's how he feels, Neil!" Scott grinned. He was thrilled to be picked before Neil for the first time in a long time. "Nice sweater buddy!" The toy maker added before standing in front of the class.
"This is my dad, Scott Calvin." Charlie introduced his dad to the class. "He's got a really neat job!" he paused dramatically. "My dad is Santa Claus!"
"Oh boy." Scott mumbled as the other kids in the class began to laugh at Charlie. "I think, what he means is I'm like Santa Claus." He clarified. "We're both giving, we're both jolly and we both work very hard one day a year." Scott chuckled uncomfortably.
"That not what I mean, Dad!" Charlie argued. "Look, On Christmas Eve, my dad pushed Santa off the roof."
"No Charlie...Ch-Charlie..." Scott tried to stop his son, but it was futile. He could already feel Neil's psychoanalytical gaze from across the room. All three adults and Jessie had already explained to Charlie that what he thought had happened at the "North pole" was just a story that Scott had told him. He wasn't actually Santa Claus. Despite everyone's insisting, Charlie continued to believe the story and he was taking it too far by bringing it into his classroom.
"Santa disappeared and my dad took his place."
"Charlie!" Scott tried to interrupt him again.
Then I went with him to deliver all the presents. Then the reindeer flew us to the North Pole where the head elf, Bernard, gave me this!" From behind Charlie's back he produced the snow globe that Bernard had given him at the North Pole.
"Look, I work for a toy company." Scott seized his opportunity when Charlie finally stopped talking. "I Deliver toys all over the country. So in a way, I'm like Santa Claus." A girl at the front of the class raised her hand. "Yes, sweetheart?" Scott asked her.
"Do you make the toys?" the girl questioned.
"No, stupid the elves do!" A boy shouted from across the room.
"Bobby, we don't say 'stupid'." The teacher corrected him. "And we don't say 'elves'. They're little people."
"No! But they really are elves!" Charlie promised.
"Which one's your favorite reindeer?" The boy named Bobby prodded.
"Comet." Charlie answered for his dad.
"Oh, uh, I-I don't have a favorite." Scott mumbled, wiping sweat from his brow.
"You mean when I grow up, if I wanna be Santa Claus," Bobby questioned, "all I gotta do is push you off a roof?"
"Alright he said that. He said that it was the best Christmas he ever had?" Scott asked Neil and Laura as the three of them were escorted to the principal's office.
"Oh big surprise! What do you think?" Laura quipped.
"It's just nice to hear it from him!" Scott said. "Is that a problem with you?"
"All right." The principal said, getting everyone's attention. "So?"
"May I speak, please?" Neil piped up. "I am a doctor."
"No he's not!" Scott cut in. "He's a psychiatrist!"
"Please go ahead, Dr. Miller." The principal ignored Scott's outburst.
"I guess we know who's the teacher's pet." Scott mumbled.
"Scott! Grow up!" Laura hissed.
"The reason we're here," The principal said with a pointed look at Scott. "Is that this is far more serious, than a boy believing or not believing in Santa Claus."
"That's right." Laura agreed. "Because Charlie thinks that this whole thing actually happened!"
"Scott what was the last thing you and Charlie did before you went to bed on Christmas Eve?" Neil asked in what Scott referred to as his 'I'm a Doctor' voice.
"We shared a bowl of sugar." Scott replied thoughtfully. "Did some shots of brown liquor, played with my shotguns, field dressed a cat, looked for women." He concluded sarcastically. "I read him a book!"
"What book?" Neil implored.
"That Hollywood Wives." Scott replied. His voice still dripping with sarcasm. "The Night Before Christmas, folks!"
"And did you go to the North Pole?" Neil pried.
"T-this is ridiculous!" Scott jumped to his feet. "I don't have time for this."
"Ridiculous or not Scott, for Charlie, this isn't some dream." The Principal said seriously. "It is real, you need to sit down with Charlie and explain to him that you are not Santa Claus."
After his heavy handed meeting with "Doctor" Neil, Laura and Charlie's principal Scott decided to just call it a day. He flung open the front door, not bothering to stop it from banging against the nearby wall.
"Daddy?" Jessie, who was still at home on vacation, called down the stairs. She been taken by surprise when he arrived home mid-day and slammed the door open. "Hey, are you okay?" She asked as her small figure could be seen running down the stairs.
"Yeah Jessie, sweetie, I'm fine." Scott quietly closed the front door behind him.
"How did Career Day go with Charlie?" Jess was almost afraid to ask.
"He told his entire class that I, am Santa Claus." Scott sighed.
"Oh. I thought he'd be over that by now." Jessie frowned.
"Apparently not." Scott sighed. "His principal says I need to talk to him, but Charlie's only eight! I don't want to ruin his illusions about Santa just yet."
"Well maybe you don't have to, let me try and talk to him." His daughter suggested.
"Really?" Scott said. "Are you sure that's a good idea?"
"It can't hurt." Jess shrugged.
Scott allowed Jessie to borrow his car for the night so that she could take her little brother out. All she needed to do what get permission from her mom now.
"I don't know Jess." Laura frowned when she explained her plan.
"Charlie had a pretty traumatic day today. More excitement could further damage his psyche." Neil interject. No one asked you Neil. Jess did her best not to roll her eyes at her stepfather.
"I'm only on break from school for a few more days and I haven't really had much time to hang out with Charlie." Jess frowned. "All I want to do is take him to the arcade and maybe get this Santa Claus idea out of his mind."
"I want to go to the arcade with Jessie!" Charlie insisted. He'd been eavesdropping on his family's conversation since he saw His Dad's car pull up.
All right." Laura agreed at last. " but have him home by nine!"
"We will be!" Her daughter promised.
Jess brought Charlie to an arcade that they used to go to all the time before she started high school. Using money her dad have given her, she bought a bucket of tokens and played a few games with Charlie. Eventually they made their way over to one of Jess' favorite games; Skeeball.
"You know," Charlie said, picking up one of the balls. "The Elves say this is the same size as the perfect snowball." He smiled before sliding the skeeball up the ramp towards the goal cups.
"Yeah, I've been wanting to talk to you about that buddy." Jessie said before shooting her own ball of the ramp.
"I already know." Charlie sighed. "Dad's in denial."
"Denial?" Jess repeated. "You're eight! How do you even know what that word means?"
"I learned it from Neil." her little brother shrugged. "It's when something is true, but you think it's untrue."
"How do you know it's true, Charlie?"
"Just because you can't prove something, doesn't mean it isn't real!" Charlie argued. Jessie was trying to put things delicately because her dad had said he didn't want Charlie's beliefs crushed.
"Okay, Char, Listen to me buddy." Jess said very seriously. She placed one hand on each of his shoulders and looked him in the eyes. "I don't think it's a good idea for you to tell everyone about the North Pole."
"Why not?" Her little brother frowned.
"Well, sometimes we think we should tell people stuff because it seems like it's the right thing to do." She began. "But other stuff, is better if we don't share it."
"You want me to lie about Dad being Santa?" Charlie asked.
"No, not lie." His sister shook her head. "More like keep it a secret between me, Dad and you."
"How come?"
"Because of Mom and Neil." Jess sighed. "Not just because of them. There's your school...you don't want the other kids at school to be jealous do you? Because we're the only ones who get to have Santa as a Dad...and it might make the other kids jealous that they just have regular parents."
"Oh." Charlie nodded. "Okay, I'll keep it a secret!" He promised.
"Thanks Char." Jess smiled. "Now let's go play some games!"